A QROPS expert has suggested some offshore pension providers in New Zealand are too lax and have let investors breach scheme rules. With a potential of an estimated NZ$300 million investment in New Zealand QROPS every year, Mark Hattersley, of financial advice support firm Strategi, alleges some advisers are ignoring QROPS rules and the system [...]
New law clears up tax error on QROPS transfers
January 12, 2011
New rules that remove the tax charge for savers aged between 50 and 55 who switch a pension in payment between providers are in the pipeline to clear up an unintentional error. The anomaly means over 50s who transfer funds from a UK pension to a QROPS no longer pay a penalty that can wipe [...]
QROPS Rules and Regulations
September 16, 2010
If you are planning to get a QROPS, what are the main rules and regulations that you should be aware of? Given that the decisions you make about your pension will affect how comfortable your retirement is, professional advice is a must. However, it is also worth familiarising yourself with a few of the basic [...]
Plans for Europe wide pension regulation
July 14, 2010
Some would argue that a Europe- wide regulatory regime for pensions is long overdue. After all, as a continent we have universally failed to take account of longer life spans and the long term nature of pension liabilities. With most final salary schemes in the United Kingdom in deficit, and spectacularly so at that, from [...]
What are you looking for?
July 1, 2010
What are you looking for? If you are planning to invest some money offshore, what are you looking for in an offshore financial centre? If you are new to offshore investments you may not have given this much consideration. However, you may be surprised to learn that offshore destinations may have quite a number of [...]
Pensions Regulator has all guns blazing
June 30, 2010
How do you perceive the Pensions Regulator? Anyone who saw it as a toothless outfit will eat their words when they learn that it has used its toughest weapon – a contributions notice – against Michel Van De Wiele, a Belgium based manufacturing company. The company was accused of seeking to use an insolvency scheme [...]
Why QROPS are better for expats and offshore workers
February 12, 2010
QROPS pensions are a rock in a sea of financial uncertainty for expats and international workers with UK pension rights. Retirement planning is almost impossible in the UK with so many firms facing pension deficits, inevitable interest rate and tax rises. For those lucky enough to have the option, a QROPS removes a lot of [...]
How to choose the right QROPS advice
February 10, 2010
The nightmare of dealing with a QROPS pension transfer through unregulated advisers is highlighted in a squabble over a recent government report about how UK crown dependencies manage financial services. Michael Foot, a former Financial Services Authority director, submitted his report that looked at how finance is regulated in the Isle of Man, Channel Islands [...]
Pension regulators swop info on suspected tax cheats
November 5, 2009
UK and US pension regulators have signed an agreement to share non-confidential information on how companies handle their pension funds across borders. The US Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp has tied in with the Pensions regulator, that oversees UK defined benefits pension schemes, and the Pension Protection Fund, that pays compensation to pensioners if an employer’s [...]
‘Stupid bankers’ under fire for tax avoidance
September 30, 2009
Financial regulators are starting to turn the screws on the big banks that have complex tax avoidance schemes in place to protect their profits and those of their corporate clients. Financial Services Authority inspectors who regularly visit the banks are collecting tax data and information about tax avoidance schemes for clients. The move follows Chancellor [...]
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